Cheeseburger diplomacy

President Bush today holds his second day of talks with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, all secreted away at Camp David where we can’t observe them and dissect the body language and other non-verbal clues. Oh well.

There’s much speculation about that relationship — will it be frostier than Bush’s Endless Love with Brown predecessor Tony Blair? The White House scoffs, noting that no one thought Bush and Blair could ever be as close as Blair and former President Clinton.

In any case, Bush and Brown are holding a weird little press avail at Camp David, open only to the pool. Then the leaders will have lunch together. For those keeping score at home, Bush is once again serving cheeseburgers — treating Brown to the same fare he served the secretary-general of NATO and the Japanese prime minister.

Charmingly unpretentious, or an embarrassing rube? It’s all in how you feel about him.